This invention relates to a wall mount for attaching an accessory to a wall surface. The wall mount includes a base plate provided with openings for passage of wood screws for immobilizing the base plate against the wall surface, as well as one part of a screw-actuated fastening device for releasably tightening the accessory to the base plate and further, a cover which includes another portion of the fastening device and which forms part of the accessory.
Wall mounts of the above-outlined known type serve for securing accessories such as hand rails, towel holders, shelves, glass holders, soap dishes and the like to a wall surface. At a selected location the base plate is secured to the wall by means of screws (such as wood screws) and thereafter the cover which forms a part of the accessory is placed over the base plate and is tightened thereto by means of an externally accessible tightening device. Thus, the accessory is mounted on the wall with the intermediary of the cover.
It is a disadvantage of the above-outlined prior art structures that it is often difficult to so arrange the cover that its outer edge lies tightly against the wall, so that during service the accessory does not wobble. Since the wall surface is often uneven, particularly in case of a tile wall, measures have to be taken to ensure that the accessory is well immobilized against the wall. Thus, according to a prior art arrangement, the base plate of the wall mount has at its upper and lower edge an angled part oriented towards the cover. One of the angled edges is provided with a groove extending along a central plane. The cover is provided with a notch in a central plane at one side and with a headless setscrew on an opposite side. One of the angled edges extends into the notch, while the headless screw slides in the groove upon tightening. Since the cover has to be slid over the base plate with a substantial clearance, it follows that during the tightening step the headless screw has to be turned several revolutions until the cover lies against the base plate. Also, the permanent pressing of the cover against the wall requires a significant torque which has to be applied to the headless setscrew. During this operation, the risks are high that one part of the headless setscrew breaks which involves a significant time loss and added expense for removing the damaged screw and replacing it with a new screw. Further, there are considerable risks of slippage of the screwdriver from the headless setscrew, resulting in damages to the highly polished accessory. In addition, after a certain period of use, soiling and oxidation are unavoidable; these occurrences significantly increase the risks of breakage of the headless screw and thus make a removal (disassembly) of the accessory more difficult.